Nickel and method of purifying and improving the same.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AUGUSTE J. ROSSI, OF NIAGARA FALLS, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE TITANIUM ALLOY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, Y., A. CORPORATION OF MAINE.

NICKEL AND METHOD OF PURIF'YING- AND IMPROVING- THE SAME.

No Drawing.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 6, 1911.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Aucusrr. J. Rossi, a citizen of the .United States, residing at Niagara Falls, in the county of Niagara and State of New York, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Nickel and Methods of Purifying and Improving the Same, of which the following is a specification.

Nickel, as industrially produced, contains compounds such for example as sulfids and, while in moltenstate, develops and absorbs gaseous elements or compounds, which are dissolved in the metal and retained therein as it solidifies during cooling. For instance sulfurous gases are thus developed and oxygen from the atmosphere is thus absorbed and the latter, to an extent, combines chemically with other elements present forming 'oxids thereof, as for example oxids of nickel,

which together with oxygen, and other ele ments ifany, remaining uncor nbined are found occluded in the mass of the solidified. metal. Moreover throughout said mass are also found, to greater orless extent, other substances, or compounds, foreign to nickel, as for instance residual slags left by the metallurgicaltreatment, which, owing to their comparative infusibility or lack of fluidity,or both are unable to rise out of the molten, metal and consequently may, to greater or less extent, remain entangled therein after its solidification.

'.The aforesaid foreign elements and compounds are usually unhomogeneously distributed in uncontrollable locations throughout the mass of the metal, thus producing blow-holes or other cavities devoid of nickel which proportionately, and undesirably, impair the metallic continuity of the mass, thus diminishing its efliciency for many of its present industrial uses. v.I believe that it has hitherto proved impossible to produce or melt nickel, on an industrial scale, without incorporation and retention in the resulting metallic mass of such foreign elements and compounds and to such extent. as to preclude its possession in theoretically normal degree of desirable physical properties' to be expected as characterizing pure nickel.

Theobject of my present invention is to provide methods of treatment whereby with such economy, simplicity and speed as to be practicable on an industrial scale, nickel possessing superior properties may be produced, in masses, substantially devoid of undesired foreign elements and compounds in-' cluding sulfids and slags. I attain said objects by means of my novel procedure hereinafter described, viz :I have discovered that if to nickel, as now produced in tht. industrial arts, and while it is melting or molten, there be added merely enough titanium to satisfy chemical afiinity therefor of all. such undesired elements present, whether in free or combined state,.all these, including slags, and, besides, such titanium so added, will be eliminated from the molten mass, the resulting product being substantially solid, pure, nickel.

My said invention comprises the following procedures: In a bath comprising the melting, or molten, nickel, to be treated, I may impart the presence of metallic titanium in such small quantity, proportioned as nearly as possible, as is suflicient merely to satisfy the chemical affinities therefor of the said undesired elements and compounds present. The said proportion of titanium required may be determined in any convenient manner, as, for example, by usual calculations based on the kinds and proportions of said undesired elements and compounds as disclosed by preliminary chemical analyses of specimens of the mass of any given type. of commercial, or other, nickel desired to be treated; or by varying tentatively the proportions of titanium so added until attainment of a final product containing substantially neither said undesired elements and compounds nor substantially any titanium, the proportion of latter used withsuch result being that required for purification of the particular type of nickel mass so tested. The titanium is so added preferably in its elemental or metallic form,

.as, forexample, an alloy of titanium with some metal, preferably in most cases an al- Ioy of titanium with nickel having a content of 10% to 12% or thereabout of titanium. In some instances, where presence of some metal other than nickel in the final product is not objectionable or is desired, the titanium may be added in the form of its alloy with such other metal, as, for example, with iron, this being the alloy of my Letters Patent- No. 609,466, dated August 23, 1898; or

with copper, this being the alloy of my Letters Patent No. 7 00,244, dated May 20, 1 902, reissued March 17 1908, No. 12,764t.

Addition of the titanium in other forms, as. for instance that of its oxid may, where conditions are developed enabling the same to ultimately yield to the nickel the required proportion of metallic titanium, be practiced without departing from my inventio-n.

The titanic material employed may be preferably added in such sub-divided state as will facilitate to an extent its distribution relatively to the mass of molten nickel. The titanic material may be charged into the crucible or other container of the bath prior to introduction thereinto of the melting or molten nickel, or it may be charged upon the latter. After addition of the titanium, the temperature of the bath is maintained fully at that of the melting point of nickel, and

will be found to be somewhat heightened by the said chemical reactions and combinations attributable to the presence of the titanium, and until these have fully taken place, the time required for these being usually' but a few minutes.

The titanium appears to not only combine chemically with undesired elements present, such as free oxygen and nitrogen, but also, by reason of its intenser affinity for such and other elements, to reduce compounds thereof, such as oxid of nickel for example, and to combine with the oxygen thus liberated to form oxid of titanium, the presence of which in the bath imparts to therein occluded slags sufiicient fluidity to insure their rising properly to the surface of the molten mass, and my researches have satisfied me that the action of the titanium upon the sulfids present effects their removal also in substantially similar manner.

After the aforesaid operations the molten nickel may be tapped out and cast in the usual manner.

It will be understood that while a final nickel product free from titanium as well as the impurities mentioned is primarily de sired and represents one feature of my present invention, nevertheless, for some purposes, presence incidentally of some little titanium in the resulting product may be unobjectionable or desirable. Such instances may be those in which the proportion of titanium remaining in the final product is less than say 1% being in amount insutlicient to justify its designation as an allow of titashould my purified nickel be remelted. To

retain said small percentages of titanium in the product it is only necessary to increase accordingly the amounts of titanium added as hereinbefore described.

The treatment of nickel as per my above described invention results in a novel final product which is characterized as being a continuously solid mass consisting throughout of substantially pure metallic nickel; as being substantially devoid of undesired elements or compounds including sulfids, slags, etc.; as containing less than 1% of titanium; as free from blow-holes and other physical imperfections due to presence or action of elements and substances other than nickel, and as of greater density and tensile strength besides other desirable qualities than nickel heretofore produced on, an industrial scale.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is the following, viz

1. The method of improving the properties of nickel which consists in adding there to While molten titanium in amount sufficient to result in a final product containing titanium not to exceed 1%.

2. The method of improving the properties of nickel which consists in adding thereto while molten an alloy containing titanium in amount sufficient to result in a final product" containing titanium not to exceed 1%.

3. The method of improving the properties of nickel which consists in adding thereto while molten an alloy containing nickel v and titanium in amount suflicient to result in a final product containing titanium not to exceed 1%.

4. As a new article a metallic body composed preponderatingly ofnickel and containing titanium not to exceed 1%.

5. As a new article nickel containing titanium not to exceed 1%.

AUGUSTE J. ROSSI. Witnesses:

WALTER D.' EDMoNDs, GEORGE G. MEASURES. 

